All subdivision of land subject to these regulations shall conform to the minimum design standards of this article and the classification of urban and rural type subdivisions as defined in Chapter 10.
Subdivisions shall conform to the intent of the Comprehensive Plan.
Public agencies using the Comprehensive Development Plan as a guide may use the following procedure for acquiring sites for public facilities which does not preclude voluntary dedications and mutual negotiations for land or the use of the condemnation laws of the State:
1. The sub-divider offers to sell the appropriate public body, agency or authority, lands, sites and locations for parks, playgrounds, schools, fire stations, or other public facilities. As soon as the Preliminary Plat has been received and reviewed, the Planning Commission shall give 45 days’ notice to the public body, agency and authority that it appears that lands should be considered for public acquisition. If within that 45 days the body receiving notice fails to act or submits a negative report on acquisition, then the subdivision and design thereof shall be treated as if no such request for land had been made.
2. If the organization receiving notice replies in writing that they desire to acquire land within the subdivision, they shall have an additional 45 days after making such reply to make arrangements for such land acquisition.
3. The time allocated for making the above determination may be extended with the mutual consent of the sub-divider and the organization involved.
All land subject to the Federal Flood Plain Management Ordinance as adopted by the City of Augusta shall be subdivided in accordance with the adopted City of Augusta Floodplain Management Ordinance. New or replacement water supply and/or sanitary sewer systems shall be designed to minimize or eliminate infiltration of flood waters into the systems and discharges from the systems into flood waters. On-site sewage disposal systems shall not be located in a flood plain or floodway.
The following conditions may be required as part of the approval of any subdivision plat:
1. That the sub-divider provide appropriate easements or reserves for the preservation of open space areas within a subdivision. Such open space may be needed to preserve areas containing watercourses, drainage ways, land periodically flooded, substantial woodland, rugged topography, and wildlife habitat; to maintain water quality and quantity. Such land is not normally considered as buildable land and should not be developed in order to maintain the quality of the environment.
2. When accepted by the appropriate Governing Body, such land may be voluntarily dedicated to public use by the sub-divider.
On land subject to excessive soil movement by the forces of wind and/or water and that may cause environmental health hazards, necessary preventative measures shall be a part of the subdivision plat. Conservation standards applicable to subdivisions shall be adhered to which are used by the County Conservation District.
1. Definitions – See Chapter 10 of these regulations.
2. All lots located in any subdivision shall be served directly by a public street. However, for commercial lots, cross lot access agreements will be allowed.
3. The arrangement, character, extent, width, grade and location of all streets shall conform to the intent of the Comprehensive Development Plan, and shall be considered in their relation to existing and planned streets; to reasonable circulation to traffic within the subdivision and adjoining lands; to topographical conditions; to the run-off of storm water; to public convenience and safety; and in their appropriate relations to the proposed uses of the land to be served by such street.
4. Where such is not shown on the Comprehensive Development Plan, the arrangement of streets in a subdivision shall either provide for the continuation or appropriate projection of existing streets in surrounding areas; or conform to a plan for the neighborhood approved or adopted by the Planning Commission to meet a particular situation where topographic or other conditions make continuance or conformance to existing streets impractical.
5. Local Streets shall be laid out so that their use by through traffic will be discouraged.
6. If a subdivision abuts or contains an existing or proposed limited access highway or arterial street or railroad right-of-way, the Planning Commission may require marginal access streets, reverse frontage lots with access control provisions along the rear property line and screening, deep lots with rear service alleys or such other treatment as may be necessary for adequate protection of residential properties and to afford separation of through and local traffic.
7. Reserve strips controlling access to streets shall be prohibited except where their control is placed with the applicable Governing body under acceptable conditions.
8. Street right-of-way requirements. Street right-of-way requirements shall be determined by the total aggregate needs for the functional components for the particular system being considered. The total aggregates shall be in increments of even numbers only. The components involved shall be as follows depending upon the urban or rural type characteristics of the street needed based on land use, traffic and density:
8.1. Moving or traffic lanes may be variable from 9 to 12 feet depending on function, e.g., low density residential, cul-de-sac residential, collector, industrial, etc. and on design speed of the roadway. A moving lane shall not include any portion of the curb and gutter section.
8.2. Parking lanes for on-street temporary parking of vehicles shall be at least 8 feet in width, measured from the face of curb for urban streets and from the outside edge of shoulder for rural roadways.
8.3. Curb and gutter shall have a width of 2 feet 6 inches and be comprised of a six inch wide curb and two foot wide gutter. Standard curb height shall be 6 inches.
8.4. Shoulders for streets without curbs shall be not less than 3 feet in width.
8.5. Parking strips for streets shall be at least 14 1/2 feet in width from the back of curb to the right- of-way line. This area shall be used for the installation of utilities, street signs, street lights, traffic control devices, fire hydrants, sidewalks, driveways, street furniture, street trees, and to provide a transition area in grades, if necessary, between the roadway and the property adjacent to the right- of-way. The parking strip for rural type roads shall be variable in width based on drainage needs.
8.6. For streets and roadways on the Federal Aid Secondary System (FAS) or any comparable functional system, prevailing design standards shall apply.
8.7. Sidewalks shall comply with the requirements set forth in Section 706.3.
9. Based on the above general criteria defined in Section 606.8, street rights-of-way and roadways shall be calculated from the following guidelines. Roadway widths shall be measured from back of curb to back of curb or from outside edge of shoulder to outside edge of shoulder.
9.1. Collector street that serves primarily industrial, office, and/or moderate to high-intensity commercial uses.
9.1.1. With parking on both sides of street: R-O-W width shall be 70 feet and roadway width shall be 41 feet.
9.1.2. With no on-street parking: R-O-W width shall be 58 feet and roadway width shall be 29 feet.
9.2. Collector street that serves primarily residential and/or low-intensity commercial uses. Collector streets without parking shall not have direct access from adjacent lots onto the collector street.
9.2.1. With parking on both sides of street: R-O-W width shall be 66 feet and roadway width shall be 37 feet.
9.2.2. With no on-street parking: R-O-W width shall be 54 feet and roadway width shall be 25 feet.
9.3. Local street on a continuous route for 4 or more blocks in length.
9.3.1. With parking on both sides of street: R-O-W width shall be 64 feet and roadway width shall be 35 feet.
9.3.2. With parking on one side of the street: R-O-W width shall be 58 feet and roadway width shall be 29 feet.
9.4. Local street that is not continuous for more than 3 blocks in length.
9.4.1. With parking on both sides of street: R-O-W width shall be 58 feet and roadway width shall be 29 feet.
9.5. Local frontage street (marginal access street).
9.5.1. With no on-street parking: R-O-W width shall be 54 feet and roadway width shall be 25 feet.
9.6. Rural or suburban street. This street type is appropriate for residential subdivisions that have a density of one dwelling unit per acre or less.
R-O-W width shall be 70 feet and roadway width shall be at least 31 feet.
There is also the option to include sidewalk.
9.7. Street right-of-way and roadway widths for collector streets may be required to be greater than the width listed for the portion within 150 feet from the intersection with an arterial.
9.8. Arterial street right-of-way widths shall be 120 to 150 feet. Right-of-way width shall be 150 feet wide for a distance of 250 feet from the section line with a 100 foot taper to normal width of 120 feet. Arterial roadway width varies depending on number of travel and turning lanes.
These widths may be modified by the Planning Commission on a showing that special conditions exist such as drainage and utility requirements, safe and efficient traffic and pedestrian movement, intersection design, etc. In applying these standards, workable street systems must be established. When a pattern of widths based on function for a given area has been established, the pattern shall be followed until another system can be established or ties into a collector or arterial system. Access control and acceleration and deceleration lanes may be required to properly handle traffic flow and to protect the carrying capacity of the street. Deviations to these requirements, recommended by the Planning Commission and approved by the Governing Body, shall be recorded on the Final Plat. (Ordinance No. 1872)
10. The horizontal sight distance shall be measured within street rights-of-way from a height of four and one- half feet above the proposed pavement surface in the right-hand lane of the roadway. Horizontal sight distance shall be a minimum of 500 feet for arterial streets, 300 feet for collector streets, and 200 feet for local streets and marginal access streets.
11. Streets shall be laid out so as to intersect as nearly as possible at right angles, and no street shall intersect any other street at less than 80 degrees.
12. Street jogs are to be avoided on arterial and collector streets. On local streets, centerline offsets of less than 150 feet should be avoided.
13. Roadway pavement at intersections shall be rounded by the following minimum radii:
14. No street names shall be used which will duplicate or be confused with the names of existing streets. Existing street names shall be used where they are or would be logical extensions of existing streets even though separated by undeveloped land.
15. Half-streets shall not be permitted.
16. Cul-de-sacs in single-family residential areas shall not be longer than seven times the average lot width or 500 feet, whichever is less as measured to the throat of the cul-de-sac. In multiple-family residential areas, such streets shall not exceed 300 feet. Urban type streets shall have a turn-around diameter of at least 70 feet and a street property line diameter of at least 100 feet, or shall have an alternative turn-around area such as hammerheads, as providing service equal to the foregoing requirement. For rural type streets, a minimum street property line diameter of 120 feet or more may be required for fire protection and other equipment. In industrial zoned properties, cul-de-sacs shall have a diameter of 130 feet to property line and a diameter of 100 feet to the face of curb.
17. Wherever possible, there shall be a tangent at least 100 feet in length between reverse curves on arterial and collector streets.
18. Collector streets, if they curve, shall have a minimum centerline curve radius of at least 350-feet. This is based on a design speed of 30 m.p.h. The curve radius may be modified to meet special conditions for other design speeds.
1. Alleys shall be provided in commercial and industrial areas, except that the Planning Commission may waive this requirement where other definite and assured provision is made for service access, such as off-street loading, unloading and parking spaces consistent and adequate for the uses proposed. Alleys in residential districts are to be discouraged.
2. When provided, the minimum width of an alley shall be 20 feet.
3. Alley intersections and sharp changes in alignment shall be avoided, but where necessary, a turning radius shall be provided to permit safe vehicular movement.
4. Dead-end alleys shall be provided with adequate turn-around facilities.
1. The lengths, width and shapes of blocks shall be determined with due regard to:
1.1. Provisions of adequate building sites suitable for the special needs of the type of use contemplated.
1.2. Zoning requirements as to lot sizes and dimensions, off-street parking and loading.
1.3. Need for convenient access, circulation, control and safety of street traffic.
1.4. Limitations and opportunities of topography.
2. A block should not exceed 1,320 feet in length unless the previous layout or topographic conditions justify a variation.
3. All blocks shall be so designed so as to provide two tiers of lots, unless a different arrangement is required in order to comply with or be permitted by other sections of these regulations.
4. Blocks may be irregular in shape, provided they are harmonious with the overall pattern of blocks in the proposed subdivision.
5. In extra-long blocks, a public pedestrian way may be required to provide access to public or private facilities such as schools or parks.
1. The lot size, width, depth, shape and orientation, and the minimum building setback lines, shall be appropriate for the location of the subdivision and for the type of urban or rural development and use contemplated.
2. Lot dimensions shall conform to the minimum requirements of any applicable zoning regulations or sanitary or building codes, unless higher standards are established in accordance with this section:
2.1. Each lot within a subdivision in the City shall be connected to the public water and sewage disposal systems.
2.2. Within the City limits where no water or sewer system is available, the provisions of the most current sewage disposal code adopted by the City of Augusta shall apply. The sub-divider and/ or property owners shall sign a waiver stating that they will connect to public water and public sewer within 180 days after said lines are constructed and that all private sewage systems will be disconnected and destroyed according to applicable regulations.
2.3. Within the “Planning Area” where no public water or sewer system is available, the provisions of the Butler County Sanitation Code shall apply. The sub-divider and/or property owners shall sign a waiver stating that they will connect to public water and public sewer within 180 days after said lines are constructed and that all private sewage systems will be disconnected and destroyed according to applicable regulations.
2.4. It is the intent of these regulations to require the installation of a public water supply and public disposal systems wherever feasible.
3. In those areas where there may be public water supply and public sewage disposal systems anticipated in the foreseeable future, the Planning Commission may require that the subdivision be designed to urban standards and lots be added together to meet the minimum rural lot requirements. In such case, only one single family dwelling shall be erected to the rural lot requirements and shall be placed on the lots in such a manner that the additional lots can be sold at a later date. The creation of such a building site through use of multiple groups of lots shall be contingent upon the establishment for record of restrictive covenants satisfactory to the legal counsel of the Planning Commission.
4. As a general guideline, the maximum depth of all residential lots shall not exceed two and one-half time the width thereof. For all other types of lots, the depth shall not exceed three times the width.
5. The area of the street right-of-way shall not be included and calculated in the area of the lot with respect to minimum lot area requirements of the Zoning Regulations.
6. There shall be no double frontage lots for single family and two family dwellings, except where the lots abut upon a limited access highway or arterial street. Double frontage lots shall not have vehicular access between such lots and an abutting limited access highway or arterial street.
7. Reversed frontage lots shall be avoided except where such are essential to provide a separation of residential development from limited access highways or arterial streets or to overcome specific disadvantages of topography and orientation.
8. Corner lots for residential use shall have extra width when necessary to permit appropriate building setback from and orientation to both streets.
9. Side lot lines, where delineated, shall be at right angles or radial to the street line, or substantially so.
10. For lots adjacent to railroad tracks, “complete access control” shall be dedicated across the lot’s street frontage for a minimum distance of 150 feet from the centerline of the nearest railroad track.
11. For lots located adjacent to an arterial street, access control shall be dedicated across the lot’s frontage to the arterial street. The number of permitted access points shall be determined by the Planning Commission based upon the recommendations of the engineer having jurisdiction and planning staff.
Staff recommendations on the number of permitted access points and distance between access points, shall be a function of the amount of lot frontage, the arterial street operating speed and the traffic carrying capacity of street improvements.
For commercial or industrial subdivisions along arterial streets, sub-dividers are encouraged to establish shared access points to the arterial street and provide access easements between lots to reduce the number and frequency of driveways onto the major street. Based upon the recommendations of the engineer having jurisdiction and planning staff, the Planning Commission may require the platting of access controls that establish:
11.1. Joint access points along common property lines; or
11.2. A cross-lot access agreement provided by the subject plat to the benefit of the adjoining property, whereby the adjoining property would subsequently, upon platting, be required to dedicate complete access control. In both above instances, a Cross-Lot Circulation Agreement would be required to ensure internal access among the lots.
12. For lots abutting local platted floodways, or in areas of inadequate drainage, the platting of a minimum building opening elevation shall be required. For lots in or abutting the mapped floodplain, the platting of the lowest floor elevation shall be required. The minimum building opening elevation shall be expressed in North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88). The elevation requirement shall be indicated on the face of the plat as well as referenced in the plattor’s text.
13. For subdivisions that propose the use of individual sewage lagoons, the gross area of each lot shall not be less than five (5) acres. This minimum area requirement is exclusive of adjacent street right-of-way that has been dedicated previous to the submission of the plat. The lot area may be reduced to not less than 4.5 acres in recognition of the additional street right-of-way dedicated through the plat for internal access or to meet desired standards along section line roads. Regardless of the lot size, the configuration or each lot must:
13.1. Ensure that adequate lot area exists for the construction and maintenance of the lagoon.
13.2. Ensure that adequate separation will be maintained between the lagoon and on-site water wells.
13.3. Ensure that adequate separation will be maintained between the lagoon and adjacent property lines and public or private rights-of-way, i.e., 100 feet minimum setback and 250 feet by 250 feet minimum building area unless lagoons are designed to be “twinned” along common property lines.
13.4. Be consistent with the area requirements for sewage lagoons that is stated in associated health codes.
1. Utility easements shall be provided where necessary, and centered on rear or side lot lines and shall be at least 20 feet wide along rear lot lines and ten feet wide alongside lot lines, except that easements for street lighting purposes shall not in any event be required to exceed 10 feet. Side lot easements, when needed for other than street lighting purposes such as drainage, may be 20 feet.
2. Where a lot or group of lots side or back on an existing high pressure oil or gas line, a building setback easement shall be provided along the high pressure oil or gas easement line. No building or structure shall be constructed within the high pressure oil or gas easement. Utility easements may abut the pipeline easement but not be located inside said easement.
3. If a subdivision is traversed by a watercourse, drainage way, or channel, then a storm water easement or drainage right-of-way shall be provided. Such easement or right-of-way shall conform substantially to the lines of such watercourse and shall be of such width or construction as may be necessary to provide adequate storm water drainage and for access for maintenance purposes. Parallel streets may be required in connection therewith. Drainage easements shall be vegetated with adapted perennial grasses or otherwise stabilized to prevent soil erosion and sediment movement by wind and water.
4. Vision triangle easements may be required on any corner lot to provide an open and usable vision path for drivers of vehicles approaching the intersection. The vision triangle shall be engineered to meet the conditions of the two streets intersecting.
5. Emergency access easements shall be dedicated to mitigate the concerns regarding emergency access that are created by cul-de-sac streets that exceed 800 feet in length in urban subdivisions or 1,200 feet in length in suburban subdivisions. A guarantee shall be submitted by the sub-divider that assures the construction of an all-weather roadway surface within an emergency access easement along with all planned access points to adjacent public or private street systems. The sub-divider shall also guarantee any required gating, fencing or special signing necessitated by the platting of an emergency access easement.
6. Where pedestrian ways are required, a pedestrian access easement 10 feet in width shall be granted.
7. Private Utility Easements. Private utility easements shall be established only when an easement is needed to cover an existing sewer service or water service line. The private easement shall be established by separate instrument and depicted on the final plat tracing along with pertinent recording information. The establishment of a private utility easement shall not be considered an alternative to guaranteeing the extension of sanitary sewer and municipal water to a proposed lot that is not already served by these required utilities with in place private service lines.
The establishment of a private utility easement over an existing utility service line shall be accompanied with the granting of a public utility easement at a suitable location for future extension of public utilities to directly serve the lot or building site benefiting from the terms of the private utility easement. A guarantee for this future public utility extension shall also be submitted.
8. Pipeline Easements. Pipeline easements existing on the property being subdivided shall be depicted on the face of the plat. The pipeline easement shall be clearly dimensioned, and the recording information for the instrument establishing the easement shall be referenced. The platting surveyor shall research the text of the pipeline easement agreement to be sure that utilities and buildings may be located adjacent to the easement without restriction of an established setback from the easement. If a setback from the pipeline easement is provided for in the pipeline easement agreement, it shall be indicated on the face of the plat. If the pipeline easement agreement does not establish building setbacks from the pipeline, or if the setbacks provided for in the agreement are determined to be inadequate, the Planning Commission may establish setbacks to be indicated on the plat. Any relocation, lowering or encasement of a pipeline, made necessary by a subdivision, shall not be at the expense of the City, the County, or any public utility company.
9. Wall Easements. In order to set aside land for the construction of walls, the platting of wall easements are permitted. Wall easements shall typically be five feet in width, shall be referenced in the plattor’s text and shall not encroach into any street easement or land being dedicated for street or drainage purposes.
A wall easement shall be platted separately from a utility, storm sewer, drainage easement or reserve if provided for by the utility layout plan or drainage plan of a subdivision. Based upon the recommendation of the engineer having jurisdiction, the platting of wall easements within utility or storm sewer easements may require the execution of a Hold Harmless Agreement, a commitment for special wall construction provisions, i.e., removable wall sections, or the making of satisfactory arrangements with affected utility companies. Any special arrangements made necessary by the platting of wall easements shall be completed prior to submitting the plat for scheduling before any governing body.
10. Private Drainage Easements or Agreements. Private drainage easements or agreements shall be established when required by the drainage plan for the subdivision. Private drainage easements shall be established by separate instrument and depicted on the final plat tracing along with pertinent recording information.
11. No Documented Easement. When a utility exists but there is no easement documented, an easement may be required as a condition of approval.
1. The minimum width of streets adjacent to areas designated, proposed or zoned for assembly, commercial or industrial use may be increased by the Planning Commission to such extent as may be deemed necessary to assure the free flow of through traffic without interference from parked or parking motor vehicles.
2. Blocks intended for assembly, commercial or industrial use shall be designed specifically for such purpose, with adequate spaces set aside for off-street parking and loading.
1. When the sub-divider desires to set aside land for amenities to be enjoyed by the residents of the subdivision, the land shall be platted as a reserve. Such amenities may include: open space, landscaping and associated irrigation systems, entry monuments, private sidewalk systems, walls, fences, earth berms, recreational facilities, group mailbox structures, guardhouses or gatehouses, lakes and ponds. In order to avoid future conflicts with the purposes platted for a reserve, it is suggested that utility easement uses within the reserve be confined to appropriately wide utility easements. Reserves shall not be landlocked, and must either abut a street or be connected to a street by an access easement.
2. Whenever the Planning Commission determines that land within a subdivision may be needed for a future public purpose, e.g., park, school site, public facility, etc., the land shall be platted as a reserve for possible future acquisition by a public agency.
3. Whenever reserves are platted as a part of a subdivision, the platting of the reserves shall be referenced in the plattor’s text. This reference shall clearly state the purposes of the reserve in addition to who is going to own and maintain the reserves. On the face of the plat, the perimeter of reserves shall be indicated with a solid line that is identical to a lot line.
4. When reserves are platted, a covenant shall be filed that specifies that future ownership and maintenance of reserves will be the responsibility of a homeowner’s or lot owner’s association made up of the property owners of lots benefiting from the reserves. The covenant shall state when the association will be formed, when the reserves will be deeded to the association and who is to own and maintain the reserves prior to the association taking over those responsibilities.
5. Except when reserves are required to be platted under the provisions of these regulations, ownership of reserves shall not be vested with individuals or corporations. Reserves are to be owned by an association representing the owners of lots that benefit from the amenities of the reserves.
6. The platting of a reserve for a specific use does not override the requirements of the zoning district in which the reserve is located. Land use is determined by the zoning text, not by the uses listed for a reserve on a plat.
7. For reserves being platted for drainage purposes, the required covenant, which provides for ownership and maintenance of the reserves, shall grant to the appropriate governing body the authority to maintain the drainage reserves in the event the owner(s) fail to do so. This covenant shall provide that the cost of such maintenance may be charged back to the owner(s) by the governing body.
8. A reserve may be platted for purposes of a neighborhood swimming pool provided the following criteria are met:
8.1. The restrictive covenant submitted regarding ownership and maintenance of reserves in the subdivision shall specify that the reserve being platted for the neighborhood pool will be owned and maintained by a homeowner’s or lot owner’s association.
8.2. A detailed site plan of the neighborhood swimming pool facility shall be submitted to the Administrator for review and approval. The site plan shall be submitted at the time the final plat is submitted for scheduling before the Planning Commission.
8.3. The detailed site plan shall be to scale and shall identify the location of all proposed uses including the pool, clubhouse, outside activity areas, mechanical equipment, parking, screening, landscaping, points of ingress and egress, and any other appropriate dimensions or information that would assist in review of the plan.
8.4. The reserve shall not be platted as a blanket utility or drainage easement. Utility and drainage easement uses within the reserve shall be confined to appropriately wide easements.
8.5. Plattor’s text shall reference platting of the reserve for “recreational uses including neighborhood swimming pools”.